Nashville!

In his web site biography, Rich Flanders claims, “I’m not a cowboy, and I don’t own that big spread on the far side of the divide.” But after listening to Yondering: Songs of the American West, some might be convinced otherwise, as Flanders clearly has a deep, intimate relationship with the old west.

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By Contributing Author Matthew J. Rogers

The strange thing about a “greatest hits” type of album is that it puts fans in the position of questioning whether or not it’s logical to purchase something that they more than likely already have. Of course fans want to support their favorite artists – but Chris LeDoux devotees have got to be wondering just how much more of the same thing they’re expected to support.

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It’s no secret that much of the general public has been conditioned to think of country music and Nashville as being inseparable from one another. The genre’s presence in the city is so rooted in tradition, and so much a part of the culture, that it’s plausible to assume no other music scene in the country, or perhaps even the world, has a closer relationship with its community.

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By Featured Contributing Editor Mandy Phillips

Carrie Underwood’s sophomore album, Carnival Ride, is all over the map when it comes to success and failures. There are certainly some wonderful songs that showcase Underwood’s big voice and appeal, but there are just as many selections that seem to not be sure if they actually belong to Underwood. Understandably, Underwood is a young artists with a number of influences on her career, and that insecurity of who she is as an artist seems to shine through with Carnival Ride. Some fans of more traditional country may find the album to be a bit too laced with pop music production, though pop fans will no doubt find the album to be too countrified.

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Fans of Alan Jackson are fans because they appreciate the no-nonsense, stripped down, traditional country music that the lanky artist has been delivering since he first lumbered onto the scene in the late 1980s. And with Good Time - Jackson’s 15th album - there’s much, much more of that. (In fact, Good Time is a monster of a CD with 17 full tracks - about half a dozen more than the average CD).

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